Spice up your Christmas with Mummy’s Green Chutney to die for!

This Christmas I am sharing with you one of my favourite recipes from my Indian cooking classes. Approximately 2 years back at my first conducted cooking classs, Malin Mendel Westerberg, Swedish Televisions Correspondent in India made this chutney. In Malin’s delicious book on India, Bombay Takeaway ,where she has used food as a metaphor and way to explain the society& culture she has added this recipe and describes it as that this “ Chutney is to die for”…hope your guests feel the same when you dish this out to them this Christmas:)

The word chutney is an anglicization of the Hindi word chatni, meaning a freshly ground relish. In colonial times it was used to denote a preserve made of slightly spiced mango and sugar syrup. In India we cannot do without all our hundreds of chutneys that we make to add flavour, taste to other dishes and sides. These fresh sauces makes Indian food very exciting and tantalizing to the palate.

Mummy’s All season Coriander mint chutney

This versatile fresh chutney inspired by my Mum can be served with snacks, as a topper on bread and toasts, in a sandwich, along with main dishes, as a dip or as a relish over BBQ’d or rosated food and is brilliant for snacks, cocktails, picnics and dinner parties! It can be stored in the fridge for 5-7 days.

Photos credit Akseli Kaukoranta

Recipe for Coriander/Mint Chutney

200gms fresh coriander leaves (also use the stalks)

100gms chopped mint leaves

1 teaspoon freshly ground ginger

2 garlic cloves

1 deseeded chili or preferably not if you like it hot

cashewnuts 100 gms dry roasted

juice of ½ lemon

2 teaspoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

150 ml turkish yoghurt(optional) or 150 ml soya yoghurt for vegans

1 tomato medium size

1 red onion medium size

Oil

Method:

Roughly chop and then fry the tomato and onion for a few minutes with little oil.

Roast the cashewnuts on a dry hot pan for 2-4 minutes. Watch it carefully so it does not turn burn.

Wash and roughly chop the corriander and mint

Put all ingredients into a food processor and blend for 3-4 minutes until smooth.

Season to taste and balance.To add more flavour and a kick I add some dry roasted chili flakes or red chili powder